Arsenal: The 3 most improved players under Mikel Arteta

2. David Luiz

When Arsenal kicked off the first match of project restart against Manchester City, David Luiz was not a feature in the starting XI. However, when he came on as a substitute, he made his presence known for all the wrong reasons.

His poor control saw Raheem Sterling through on goal before he brought down Riyad Mahrez in the box to concede a penalty and a red card. It was not the return to action Arsenal wanted, but Mikel Arteta didn’t hold it against Luiz and instead looked to build his confidence.

And it certainly showed, too. In all three matches against Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea, Luiz was absolutely phenomenal. Yes, he was protective of the goalkeeper but in all the right ways. as he looked to win challenges fairly and even put his body on the line when need be.

If you were to watch the FA Cup final with natural sound, you could see that Luiz was constantly being instructed by Arteta and it paid dividends in the end. The Chelsea goal was sloppy but early goals often are. After this, Luiz picked himself up and guided his defence to a resilient performance after this.

The contract renewal will have done his confidence the world of good, I’m sure. It shows that Arteta trusts in Luiz and if he continues to perform the way he has been, I have absolutely no problem with this.